I am having some problems with the cooling fan. This is my second HP laptop and I know that on my last one the cooling fan was an issue, and so it arises again. Currently it works, but it sounds loud and like its really struggling. I also got the message "the system has detected that a cooling fan is not operating correctly. Continued operation would not be recommended at this time... may cause unpredictable behavior that could result in random shut down, data loss or possible system damage".

I've read things about dust removal and I feel like that is only a temporary solution and I want to look into getting a new fan and motor, but I am nervous about what happens if I purchase one online that ends up not being compatible. I have the HP pavilion Dv6 but am not sure which one it is when I look up cooling fans. I purchased it in 2012 so its an "older" model by computer standards. Any help here would be much appreciated...

HP is ver notorious for these issues. The new ones have a program called "Cool Since" that adjust the fan speed depending on the processors activity levels. I would recommend sticking to Intel and getting a computer with at lest a quad core processor, With i7 out anything less is crazy. The price of a quad core isn't bad and on neweggs site in the outlet you can find great deals on refurbished or open box deals.

I am having some problems with the cooling fan. This is my second HP laptop and I know that on my last one the cooling fan was an issue, and so it arises again. Currently it works, but it sounds loud and like its really struggling. I also got the message "the system has detected that a cooling fan is not operating correctly. Continued operation would not be recommended at this time... may cause unpredictable behavior that could result in random shut down, data loss or possible system damage".

I've read things about dust removal and I feel like that is only a temporary solution and I want to look into getting a new fan and motor, but I am nervous about what happens if I purchase one online that ends up not being compatible. I have the HP pavilion Dv6 but am not sure which one it is when I look up cooling fans. I purchased it in 2012 so its an "older" model by computer standards. Any help here would be much appreciated...

There should be a model number on the bottom of the laptop - please post the full model.

Also, the DV6 series are notorious for overheating. Especially the ones with nVidia GPU's.

I have one of those. A real workhorse media laptop. The sound system will make you think you're in one of those old Maxell tape commercials.

I found over the years (Yes it still works) that the intake fan and the cooler get clogged up at the drop of a hat. This causes the fan to drag and the bios shows a fan warning. My solution is this.

Lay out a towel and flip the laptop over bottom side up.

Take a thin stiff wire or toothpick that will fit between the grill and push it in between a couple of the fan blades. (This keeps the fan from free spinning and maybe blowing out a bearing.)

Take a can of cleaner air and using the tube, spray off the fan real good.
Angle toward the cooler fins and give them a good blast.

From the side where the air vent is, give that a good close up blast. If the tube fits between the grill, slide it in and give it a real good blast.

Go back to step 2 and repeat.

I have to say they're good laptops. I have the dv6205us. You just have to take care of them. Do a clean up a couple of times a year and that will keep that part running good.
Also keep in mind that laptop is a misnomer. In your lap, on the arm of the couch, or on the bed covers, will block the air intake vents and cause it to get hot. You really need to give this a read also. Save it to your drive for future reference.